Gun control dominates Malloy’s Norwich forum

When Gov. Dannel P. Malloy entered the Norwich City Council chambers for a town-hall style meeting with constituents Thursday night, he was greeted with respectful applause. View a video replay of the meeting in the player below or watch on our VIMEO ...

When Gov. Dannel P. Malloy entered the Norwich City Council chambers for a town-hall style meeting with constituents Thursday night, he was greeted with respectful applause.

When Griswold resident and military veteran Jeremy Newman told Malloy he had three AR-15 assault rifles on back order and worried about a “monopoly of force” by government officials, the cheers were vigorous and loud.

Malloy, who is traveling around the state talking directly with residents in city halls, has become accustomed to such passion surrounding guns control, which has dominated Connecticut’s political sphere since the Dec. 14 shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

It was no different in Norwich, where all but three questions centered around the issue.

“I want to assure you I believe you have the right to bear arms, and I fully support it,” Malloy said. “But I believe we should take appropriate steps to make ourselves as safe as we possibly can be in this state.”

A heavy law enforcement presence accompanied Malloy’s visit to the city, with four marked Norwich cruisers parked in front of City Hall, and several members of the governor’s state police guard fanned out around the building.

Officials configured the council chambers and an overflow room to seat 300 people, Fire Marshal Kenneth Scandariato said. A closed circuit television was installed for those who weren’t able to be in the council chambers, which was filled to capacity.

Norwich Mayor Peter Nystrom, who introduced Malloy in brief remarks, asked all in attendance for decorum — a request that was obliged throughout the hour-long discussion.

“I think we owe him a level of respect that the governor deserves. I know we’ll all be that way tonight,” Nystrom said.

From there, comments quickly pivoted to the hot-button issue, where Malloy staked out several positions. He’s against an ammunition tax but will “fight like the Dickens” for universal background checks.

He favors a renewed assault weapons ban and limits on the number of bullets in magazines.

Paul Nelson, of Oakdale, said Malloy’s priorities are mislaid.

“You should focus your attention on illegal firearms sales, mental illness, drugs and violent video games in the hands of adolescents,” he said.

Jerry Morales, of Preston, said he moved to Connecticut five years ago partly because of the state’s gun laws.

“Right now, I see the promise of the Second Amendment being curtailed, and it concerns me. Do we have to have such stringent requirements on getting weapons and ammunition as well? This is like a bit of an encroachment on our freedoms, and where does it end,” he said.

Malloy reiterated his stance that state lawmakers are not looking to take guns away from law-abiding citizens.

Page 2 of 2 - “People say, ‘if you have laws and you change them, one thing leads to confiscation,’” he said. “It’s not what we’re doing.

What we’re saying is that we want to make things as safe as they possibly can be.”

Though reforms to the state’s gun laws dwarfed conversation on other topics, Malloy had a terse exchange with Shawn Mawhiney, a spokesman for The William W. Backus Hospital, over proposed cuts to the industry in his two-year spending plan.

Malloy said hospitals will continue to split a $1.7 billion pool of state funding – a figure that has increased from $925 million in 2010.

He also lashed out at the high compensation levels of hospital executives, an average of about $2 million a year, he said.

“Let me assure you the nurse changing the bedpan is not making $2.2 million,” Malloy said.

Mawhiney said the funding mechanism for hospitals is far more complex than presented by the governor, with many costs being absorbed through the treatment of uninsured patients who need emergency room care.

“It’s not as simple as what you’re stating,” Mawhiney said. “No hospitals are applauding the budget you’re proposing.”

After the event, Malloy said the constituent outreach meetings are important.

“This is democracy. I didn’t change their minds, they didn’t change mine, but I truly think people feel better about their government today because they had their governor here to ask questions of,” he said.

View a video replay of the meeting in the player below or watch on our VIMEO channel.

Malloy's visit was the third of its kind this year and the 38th since he took office in 2011. As was the case at his previous stops this year in Middletown and New Britain, residents wanted to know whether the governor supported the Second Amendment.

He said he did, but wanted to see Connecticut's laws tightened.

"I want to assure you I believe you have the right to bear arms, and I fully support it," Malloy said. "But I believe we should take appropriate steps to make ourselves as we possibly can in this state."